Alberta minors will be prohibited from consuming or purchasing vaping products under new legislation introduced Tuesday, but the province will not immediately ban or restrict flavours.

If passed, the legislation would set the minimum age for purchasing, possessing, and consuming products at 18 and restrict any sharing of products to youth under that age. It would also align with and expand on federal and provincial tobacco laws by banning usage in public areas, including playgrounds, around hospitals, sports fields, and on school properties.

Vaping products like e-cigarettes and juice could not be sold at health facilities, colleges, and retailers with pharmacies. Vaping displays, advertisements and promotion at convenience stores and gas stations would need to follow tobacco restrictions which prohibit products from being displayed.

“(We) recognize that there must be a balance. A balance between restricting the availability and promotion of vape products to our youth, while making them available to adult Albertans who are trying to quit smoking,” said Health Minister Tyler Shandro at a Tuesday news conference.

Alberta is the last province to introduce vaping legislation. Bill 19, the Tobacco and Smoking Reduction Amendment Act, comes after the government did a review of its Tobacco and Smoking Reduction Act in the fall. The act, dating back to 2013, was enacted before vaping became a public health concern.

Unlike other provinces, the government isn’t moving to restrict or ban flavours right away. Public health interest groups have called on the province to follow in the steps of Nova Scotia and other jurisdictions by banning flavours such as candy, peaches, chocolate and bubblegum that may be more enticing to youth.

The law would give the health minister the authority to regulate flavours in an effort to discourage youth vaping. Shandro said public health officials who would be involved in regulation are dealing with the provincial response to the pandemic and have limited bandwidth.

The ministry will work on recommendations and monitor the situation, he said.

Businesses have expressed strong opposition to the idea of a flavour ban, saying it’s important for smokers to switch to vaping, and such a ban could drive buyers to the black market.

NDP Opposition health critic David Shepherd was pleased to see the bill but encouraged the government to act quickly to fill in its gaps.

“I’m a bit puzzled why they didn’t follow the lead of British Columbia in restricting the sale of flavoured vaping products to age-restricted stores as a way to reduce exposure to young Albertans,” said Shepherd.

Shepherd echoed public health interest groups in Alberta who have called for limitations on nicotine concentration in vaping e-juice, but Shandro said the government did not feel it was necessary because the federal government has already set a limit.

Large manufacturers, also consulted in the government review, opposed restricting nicotine levels, arguing that adult smokers require higher levels to better transition away from smoking tobacco.

Les Hagen, executive director of Action on Smoking and Health, said he is pleased that the bill restricted vaping use in public places to match smoking rules and include places where cannabis use is banned, but said no action against flavoured e-juices denies protection for young people.

“You’re talking about flavours that appeal to kids, and the companies that are pushing these products on kids know damn well,” Hagen said.

Shandro said the enforcement of tobacco laws have had a “positive effect” in bringing smoking rates down among young people and he anticipates the new legislation would help curb e-cigarette use among young people.

Hagen agreed, saying the decision to ban flavoured tobacco is a big reason youth smoking has been curbed. But he said people who are switching from tobacco to vaping aren’t looking for flavoured products — they are looking for a substitute.

“We’re hoping that at some point in time the law will be amended to extend to a flavour ban on vaping products. Until that happens, we’re not sure if this bill is going to achieve its desired objective,” he said.

The bill is expected to come into effect in the fall.

Shandro said that aligning many smoking and vaping restrictions will reduce confusion for the public and law enforcement.

Rules under the provincial Tobacco and Smoking Reduction Act, including a fine of up to $1,000 for smoking in a public place, would apply to vaping. For those under 18 years old, that fine would be $100.

In Alberta, the rate of grade 10, 11 and 12 students who had vaped in the last 30 days before they were surveyed surged from eight per cent in 2014-15 to 30 per cent in 2018-2019, according to the government.

In February, the government announced that all vaping products, including cigarette juices, would be taxed an extra 20 per cent beginning in the fall — a move it predicted would bring in $4 million in revenue in 2020-21. The UCP increased taxes on tobacco products in October, increasing the tax on a carton of 200 cigarettes by $5 to $55.